Toyo Racers Captured Six Stage Wins and 13 Podiums at Dakar 2013

Toyo Tires racers captured six stage wins and a total of 13 podiums during the running of the 2013 Dakar which completed its final stage this past weekend. Running from Lima, Peru to Santiago, Chile, the roughly 5,000-mile 14-stage rally wound its way south along the Pacific Coast, while sweeping inland through parts of Argentina. Competitors were challenged with extreme off-highway conditions which included huge sand dunes, rock strewn desert roads, deep river crossings and treks through high mountains.

In addition to Team Toyo’s Robby Gordon, two past Dakar champions Carlos Sainz and Nasser Al-Attiyah also took on the Dakar using Toyo Open Country M/T-R tires. Immediately, Sainz captured Stage 1 with his American-built #303 Team Qatar Red Bull buggy. Al-Attiyah then responded by winning Stages 3, 4 and 6 with his #300 Team Qatar Red Bull buggy.

The results by Toyo Tires-equipped racers during the 2013 Dakar included:

Stage 1: Win (Sainz); Third (Al-Attiyah)

Stage 3: Win (Al-Attiyah); Second (Gordon)

Stage 4: Win (Al-Attiyah)

Stage 5: Third (Gordon)

Stage 6: Win (Al-Attiyah); Third (Gordon)

Stage 7: Third (Gordon)

Stage 8: Third (Gordon)

Stage 11: Win (Gordon)

Stage 12: Second (Gordon)

Stage 13: Win (Gordon)

“To win nearly half of the stages in this year’s Dakar is a wonderful achievement for Toyo Tires,”said Amy Coleman, senior director of marketing, Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. “We are proud to be associated with the top teams that compete in the Dakar, and are especially proud they have chosen to rely on our Open Country M/T-R for conquering the world’s toughest race.”

This year Robby Gordon and his #315 SPEED Energy / Toyo Tires / MAPEI HUMMER rebounded from challenges early in the rally to win Stages 11 and 13, capturing a total of eight podiums along the way. Gordon ultimately finished 14th overall in this year’s endurance rally.

“I've made mistakes this year, and I'm extremely proud of my team. We have had zero mechanical issues and zero flats thanks to a great partner in Toyo Tires,” said Gordon.“We hope to learn as much as we can from this year’s rally. We will be back next year!”

Another driver that impressed the fans this year and relied on Toyo Open Country M/T-R tires was Eric Vigouroux driving his #319 Herock / Toyo Tires Chevrolet Silverado trophy truck. Vigouroux is a veteran of endurance rallies, and finished this year in 22nd overall.